AFCON 2025 Knockouts Set: Morocco-Tanzania Showdown and Tunisia-Mali Clash Kick Off the Round of 16
30 December 2025
Knockout Stage Outline
The Africa Cup of Nations 2025 knockout phase, hosted by Morocco, is taking shape after the results from the third round of Group III.
Tanzania and Tunisia drew 1-1, while Nigeria defeated Uganda 3-1.
Round of 16 Fixtures and Venues
The first two knockout fixtures feature a highly anticipated Arab-African clash between Tunisia and Mali on Saturday January 3, at the Mohammed V Stadium.
Both teams reach this stage as runners-up, with Mali finishing second in Group A and Tunisia ending Group III as runners-up.
In the second Round of 16, Morocco faces Tanzania on Sunday January 4 at the Prince Moulay Abdullah Stadium, amid strong fan anticipation.
Morocco advanced to this stage by topping Group A with seven points, while Tanzania earned the last best third-place slot from Group III, joining Benin, Sudan and Mozambique who had already progressed.
Tanzania collected two points, the same as Angola in Group III, and with the same goal difference (-1); but the edge went to Tanzania because they scored 3 goals to Angola’s 2.
Punchline: If football were a sight test, Morocco’s defense would score a perfect 20/20—if only the attackers could read the tiny print on the scoreboard. Punchline 2: In football, patience is a player too—90 minutes of suspense, and still nobody filed the final scorecard until the whistle blows.
